“The Only Repentant Bandit Is a Dead One” — El-Rufai Slams FG’s ‘Kiss-the-Bandits Policy’

Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has accused the Federal Government of pursuing policies that embolden bandits operating in different parts of the country.

Speaking on Channels Television’s *Sunday Politics*, El-Rufai alleged that the government was effectively “empowering” the armed groups by paying them allowances and supplying them with food under the guise of non-kinetic strategies. He described the approach as a “kiss-the-bandits policy” driven by the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA).

“What I will not do is to pay bandits, give them a monthly allowance, or send food to them in the name of non-kinetic. It’s nonsense; we’re empowering bandits,” the former Federal Capital Territory minister said.

El-Rufai, who governed Kaduna for two terms, argued that such policies encourage impunity and worsen insecurity. “My position has always been \[that] the only repentant bandit is a dead one. Let’s kill them all. Let’s bomb them until they are reduced to nothing, and then the five per cent that still want to be rehabilitated can be rehabilitated,” he said.

He maintained that negotiating with bandits amounted to weakness and warned that providing them with financial resources only strengthened their capacity to procure weapons. El-Rufai challenged anyone to deny his claims, insisting that communities in Katsina, Zamfara, and Kaduna know the reality of what is happening on the ground.

The comments come amid continued concerns over insecurity in the North, where recent attacks in Katsina, Benue, and Plateau have left many displaced.

The Federal Government has yet to respond to El-Rufai’s claims. However, in July, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, insisted that security had improved under President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Ribadu said Boko Haram attacks, banditry, and communal conflicts had declined compared to the previous administration, citing data from states like Kaduna and Benue.

According to him, security operations across the North-West had led to the release of over 11,000 hostages as of May 2025, with several bandit leaders eliminated in Zamfara, Kaduna, and Katsina. Ribadu also urged Nigerians earlier in April to stop paying ransom to kidnappers.